By Cathy Locke, Sacramento Bee

The federal Bureau of Land Management, citing residents’ safety concerns, has issued an order temporarily prohibiting the discharge of firearms in Kanaka Valley, near the Pine Hill Preserve in western El Dorado County.

The restriction will remain in effect while a long-range management plan for the area is developed, according to a bureau news release.

Kanaka Valley came into federal ownership in February through a cooperative acquisition process with the federal Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, American River Conservancy and BLM. The 695-acre property links existing public and state lands, creating a continuous corridor.

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Join the Tahoe Rim Trail Association for the End of Season Workday celebration on the Tahoe Rim Trail Oct. 9 from 9am-4pm.

Volunteering to build trails is a great way to give back to the TRT and to meet other trail enthusiasts. he workday will begin at the Kingsbury South Trailhead off Highway 207 in the Heavenly Stagecoach parking lot in Stateline. Tasks will be available for volunteers of all skill levels and physical abilities, from easy to strenuous. After free coffee from Alpen Sierra Coffee Roasting Company in the morning, a trail will built out to a new vista of South Lake Tahoe.

Volunteers will also receive free lunch.

To participate, register on the online events calendar at www.tahoerimtrail.org or call Max at (775) 298/0239.

We will be working on section of rerouted trail near Daggett Summit. The reroute will move 3.8 miles of paved road back into the forest. The construction of these 13 miles of new trail will enhance the safety of trail users, improve recreational opportunities, reduce impacts to sensitive resources, and reduce future maintenance requirements.

Volunteers must wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants, boots and work gloves; bring sunscreen, lunch, bug spray and plenty of water. Check the weather reports and bring additional clothing as necessary. The Tahoe Rim Trail Association will provide hard hats, all trail tools and crew leaders.

By Brenda Knox

Another year of crazy weather did not keep more than 200 enthusiastic runners away from the 21th Annual Lake Tahoe Kokanee, 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon Trail Runs.

Volunteers and runners started arriving amidst a downpour of heavy rain on Oct. 3. This South Shore run dominated by local runners. Inclement weather never deters the hearty souls from the Lake Tahoe area. A perfect rainbow brought some luck to the half marathoners as they started their race.

The Tahoe Mountain Milers and Sagebrush Stompers running clubs have put on this event for 21 years and have dealt with all kinds of weather.

The first-place overall finishers for the 5K run were for the men Harley Norton with a time of 20:57 and for the women Ellen Lucas with a time of 22:09. The first overall finishers for the 10K run were for the women Maureen Sheehan with a time of 46:45 and for the men Chris Badolato with a time of 40:11. The overall top winners for half marathon were Dusty LaChapelle for the men with a time of 1:31:21 and Anne Hitchcock for the women with a time of 1:42:09.

All net proceeds of the 20th Annual Lake Tahoe Kokanee Runs benefit the Tahoe Heritage Foundation, a nonprofit organization supporting U.S. Forest Service environmental education programs at Lake Tahoe.

All participants in the Kokanee Trail Runs can find their times and placement information online.

All top 3 finishers in each age division are listed below.

5K Top 3 Finishers (Female)

Age: 0-12

1. Bailey Gansberg

2. Blanca Sosa

3. Ally Sullivan

Age: 13-15

1. Emily Adams

2. Alexandra Morgan

3. Tara Howe

Age: 16-19

1. Sonya Riley

Age: 20-29

1. Brooklyn Andreason

2. Anna Seals

3. Karen Bailey

Age: 30-39

1. Jennifer Dulkevich

2. Katie McRae

3. Jen Roman

Age: 40-49

1. Dennette Sullivan

2. Bridget Orr

3. Janet McDonnell

Age: 50-59

1. Ellen Lucas

2. Trish Hall

3. Karen Masters

Age: 60-69

1. Kathleen Becker

2. Rebecca Link

3. Stephanie Seals

5K Top 3 Finishers (Male)

Age: 0-12

1. Connor McRae

2. Joshua Sullivan

3. Tobin McRae

Age: 13-15

1. Harley Norton

2. Noah House

Age: 16-19

1. Michael Shonnard

Age: 30-39

1. Rick Roman

2. Ryder Couch

3. Steve Dulkevich

Age: 40-49

1. Keith Shonnard

2. Brian McRae

3. Sean Sweeney

Age: 50-59

1. Jeff Colameco

2. Keith Waterman

Age: 60-69

1. Richard Roman Sr.

Age: 70 plus

1. Ron Watkins

10K Top 3 Finishers (Female)

Age: 13-15

1. Cassidy Cichowicz

2. Christy Walonit

Age: 20-29

1. Natalie Craven

2. Jill Lourin

3. Hannah Desantis

Age: 30-39

1. Cecilia Pascual Garrido

2. Claire Harrison

3. Blair Harilleroad

Age: 40-49

1. Maureen Sheehan

2. Diana Evans

3. Sandy Herback

Age: 50-59

1. Lynn Weibezahl

2. Missy Sandeman

3. Deby Kellogg

Age: 60-69

1. Odette Hudson

2. Marvis Friesen

3. Judy Reed

10K Top 3 Finishers (Male)

Age: 0-12

1. Dustin Orr

Age: 13-15

1. Eric Dunn

2. AJ Marino

3. Skyler Smith

Age: 20-29

1. Dustin Evans

Age: 30-39

1. Chris Badolato

2. Jason Collin

3. Travis Miller

Age: 40-49

1. Mike Keck

2. Bob Woodman

3. Chuck Taylor

Age: 50-59

1. Doug Cichowicz

2. Dave Martini

3. Pat Medau

Half Marathon Top 3 Finishers (Female)

Age: 20-29

1. Andie Gelhausen

2. Kelly Huck

Age: 30-39

1. Anne Hitchcock

2. Genevieve Evans

3. Valerie Gordon

Age: 40-49

1. Coleen Dalton

2. Natalie Collin

3. Rita Frank

Age: 50-59

1. Mo Bartley

2. Leona Allen

3. Beth Sanderson

Age: 60-69

1. Judy Shipman

2. Evelyn Watkins

Half Marathon Top 3 Finishers (Male)

Age: 20-29

1. Juan DeOlivia

Age: 30-39

1. Dusty LaChapelle

2. Jamie Adams

3. Steve Edmundson

Age: 40-49

1. Ross McMahan

2. Bryan Hacker

3. Raj Crow

Age: 50-59

1. David Norvell

2. Tom Eckert

3. Richard Stockdale

Age: 60-69

1. Ron Nageotte

2. Brian McFarren

3. Ron Peck

Brenda Knox is a board member of the Tahoe Mountain Milers.

By Dana Turvey

STATELINE – Trail builders, trail users and landowner gathered for three days to talk all things mountain bike related.

“IMBA is a good, knowledgeable organization specific to mountain bike trail building,” attendee Dave Clock said. “People don’t understand the hoops you have to jump through to build trails. The Forest Service as an entity has come to IMBA asking for help … they aren’t being hard-nosed, saying we have to do things this way or that. The Forest Service is saying ‘help us to know what you want.’ It’s been extremely productive.”

Clock is an example of the 90-plus who signed up for Oct. 1-3 conference. A former bike shop owner, he’s now lead bike mechanic for Tahoe Sports Ltd. in South Lake Tahoe.

Many familiar faces rounded out the meeting room, from shop workers to trail volunteers and a blend of cycling enthusiasts of all skill levels.

“This is a unique opportunity for riders to have their voices heard on the type of trails they want in the Tahoe region,” Tom Ward, IMBA’s California policy advisor, said of the event. “The Forest Service is ready to unveil their plans for managing Lake Tahoe over the next 10 to 15 years, so this is a key moment for mountain bikers to prepare our best speaking points for the public commentary period. Decision-makers in the Forest Service will be on hand at this event, and it’s IMBA’s goal to prepare both sides to work together in the months ahead.”

The International Mountain Bike Association and U.S. Forest Service hosted this first Tahoe regional mountain bike conference. While the Boulder-based bike advocates attend worldwide conferences every two years, the Tahoe meetings stood as a prototype of what IMBA hopes to provide to other regions across the nation.

The three-day conference at MontBleu used a series of seminars to share information directly between the mountain bike community of Lake Tahoe to the U.S. Forest Service.

Topics included Mountain Biking at Summer Resorts, Building the Tahoe Bike Community and Trail Science, Design and Management.

One of the more popular conferences was a roundtable discussion titled Trails for Tahoe. Nine topics were listed on dryboards around the room; after splitting into small groups attendees spent a few minutes discussing each issue before listing pertinent solutions or feedback for each.

Topics and some of the shared input included:

• What should IMBA do to help the Lake Tahoe mountain bike community? Create an online community message board; develop a local IMBA club to specifically focus on Tahoe mountain biking (currently there is not a Tahoe branch);

• What specific input should mountain bikers provide on USFS planning efforts? Volunteer hours can help with grant funding; explain the type of trails and experience we want, both front-country and back-country;

• What types of trail/riding experiences are desired? Develop more beginner and advanced trails (it was agreed there are ample for intermediates); add signage with trail descriptions; connectivity of trail system; use natural terrain features on advanced terrain;

• What role can local bike shops play? Share information about successful and new trail work; influence where people ride; promote trail work days for volunteers.

A seminar on the final day called Community Bike Parks focused on the viability and popularity of mountain bike parks within a Parks and Recreation structure.

Ty Polastri of the Lake Tahoe Bike Coalition reported, “This idea of a bike park within the community is something I presented to the [South Lake Tahoe] City Council for Bijou Park. This seminar brought it down to two ideas: first, we need to organize a group of people to present the idea formally and second, it needs to be accompanied by a feasibility study generated by people like us. These can run from $5,000 to $10,000 and there are companies who create professional feasibility reports, like (seminar leaders) Hillride Progression Development Group.

“With this whole Trails Conference, where we’re headed is toward the hope of the local bike shops and the local volunteer groups and the local riders coming together in a cohesive way to work with the city, with the Forest Service and with the other entities to have a bigger voice than just mine, so the agencies will respond.”

Echoing the sentiment was Max Jones from Spooner Lake Outdoor Co., at the base of Tahoe’s famous Flume Trail.

He said, “We all have to work together … local bike shops could promote the variety of trails as they get built. Then we get people back over and over. Why does a downhill ski resort have 150 runs? Well, because tomorrow when that guest comes back, they want to ski on that one now. Here, the Forest Service is asking for our help. If the mountain bike community, if the trail building fringe doesn’t step up to this opportunity, then we are lost. I’ll say it that strongly.”

Polastri concluded, “The Forest Service has reached out to us, which is huge. They are responding to all the illegal trails that are being built, which use USFS resources to repair or remove them and also, they need to build a volunteer base. They have had trail workdays and had no volunteers show up.

“Overall, this conference has brought together the various groups – the bike shops are here, the Rim Trail is here, the Bike Coalition, TRPA, trail builders and passionate riders are all here. It’s the first time all these entities have gotten together and I feel energetically that they can come together to make the steps we need for our bike community.”

For those interested, the next USFS trail workday is Oct. 9 from 9am to 1pm. Volunteers should meet at the first gate of the Corral Loop at Oneidas Road in South Lake Tahoe. Call (530) 543.2694 for more information.

Sierra Resort has planned its annual Keep Sierra Clean day for Oct. 10 at 10am and has set a target of collecting 10 pounds of trash per attendee from the slopes.

In addition to doing good for the local environment, this event annually builds momentum heading into winter for those most loyal to Sierra-at-Tahoe. Friends, family, local ski and snowboard teams, and dedicated passholders turn out to show their love for the mountain by giving their time and effort to keep it beautiful.

This year’s collection effort will cover some of the most impacted trails and base area locations, as well as spread out across areas that have not been covered by previous year’s events. All of the trash will be weighed and collected, with prizes given in a variety of categories. There will be a barbecue with live music by Acoustic MoJo at the end of the day to celebrate Keepín Sierra Clean.

Participants should come prepared to navigate steep and sometimes rocky terrain with sturdy footwear. Work gloves are recommended. To help keep the event low-impact, participants should also bring their own water bottles.

After the conclusion of the event, there will be a tailgate ski swap in “B” Lot, where participants are invited to buy and sell ski and snowboard gear. There is no fee to participate in the swap, which will end at 3pm.

Event schedule:

10:10am registration begins

10:30am head out on the mountain

Noon live music by Acoustic MoJo

12:30pm gather by the main lodge to weigh trash

1pm BBQ begins

1:30pm prizes distributed

2pm ski swap begins

3pm event concludes.

A new nature trail at Granlibakken, just outside of Sunnyside-Tahoe City, allows parents to introduce their children to nature in an entertaining and educational manner.

The half-mile “discovery trail” features a variety of stations designed to teach kids about the lifestyles and habitats of animals. Its format combines the fun and excitement of a playground with the educational possibilities of a museum. By combining active elements, where children crawl, jump and run, with opportunities to explore and observe interesting natural phenomena, it simultaneously caters to a child’s need for physical exertion and desire to learn about the natural world.

For instance, a gathering of tree stumps encourages kids of all ages to hop from place to place while pondering a frog’s mode of transportation, and a set of “critter covers” – hinged lids that open up to reveal salamanders and millipedes – teach them about the habitats of crawling creatures.

The trail was built by volunteers from around the country, who assemble every year at a different wilderness destination to learn about, enjoy, and give back to the environment. This year the organization, called Family Nature Summits, selected Lake Tahoe for its week-long program.

During the week, participants of all ages hike, kayak, bird-watch, and participate in a variety of other activities designed to teach them about the ecology and culture of the area in which they are recreating.

As part of the week’s activities, each participant dedicates a few hours to a community service project decided upon by the group’s leadership. Since the program attracts hundreds of attendees each year, this small investment of individual time is multiplied into a considerable labor force. Past projects have included planting trees in Utah’s Wasatch National Forest, removing invasive vegetation in the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina, and maintaining trails in several wilderness areas.

This year’s community service project was designed and led by Liz Brownlee, a conservation educator and longtime summiteer.

“The Discovery Trail is a space for kids to connect with nature, to see its wonders, and to have fun. That connection with nature is incredibly valuable for kids because it stimulates creativity, confidence, respect and so much more. Nature benefits, too, because each child playing in the woods is one more person who cares for the land, who wants to see it protected for the next generations,” Brownlee said in a press release.

For more information or to register, visit the website.

By Kraig Becker, Gadling

With the adventure travel market continuing to grow at an astonishing rate, women only adventures have become an increasingly popular option as well.

These trips generally offer all the same wild and challenging options that any other adventure vacation would, with perhaps a few creature comforts added in for good measure.

One of the top travel companies that specializes in women’s only travel is Call of the Wild, based out of Mountain View. The company first began organizing adventure vacations back in 1978 when founder Carole Laitmer was unceremoniously fired from her secretarial job. In order to make ends meet, she soon began organizing guided trips for women into the High Sierra Mountains of California, and the rest is, as they say, history.

Now in its 32nd year of business, Call of the Wild continues to organize some of the best adventurous getaways both domestically and abroad. For instance, some of their upcoming trips include hiking around Lake Tahoe to enjoy the Indian Summer, trekking in the the shadow of Mt. Everest in Nepal, and a weekend of snowshoeing in Sequoia National Park. Other trips will take clients to Peru, New Zealand, Guatemala, and beyond.

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The Nevada Division of Forestry will be conducting controlled burns at Tunnel Creek in the Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park backcountry throughout October and November.

The Tunnel Creek road, from Highway 28 to Tunnel Creek Station, may be closed in order to conduct the burns. Signs will be posted throughout the area when burns are being conducted. Nearly 100 acres will be treated in 15 phases.

The burns are part of ongoing fuels treatment and forest restoration efforts in the Lake Tahoe area.

The Tunnel Creek burns are being conducted by the Nevada Division of Forestry in cooperation with the Division of State Parks and Division of State Lands.

Contact Robert Gregg at (775) 684.2720 for additional information.

By Sam McManis, Sacramento Bee

Starting Friday, it will be possible to enjoy the American River’s south fork from Folsom Lake to near Coloma and stay dry doing so.

The scenic stretch of (mostly) untouched nature has long been among the West’s premier locations for whitewater rafting and kayaking. But for those on foot, horse or mountain bike, there hasn’t been a way to traverse the full length of the winding south fork stretch that many say puts the “gorge” in gorgeous.

This morning, a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Salmon Falls trailhead will trumpet the opening of the 25-mile South Fork American River Trail, a multiuse path featuring seasonally wildflower-saturated grasslands, oak woodlands, riparian habitats, sage-covered ridges and views of the river below.

The trail’s opening Friday morning for use by hikers, runners, mountain bikers and (for most of its length) equestrians will be the culmination of decades of grant-writing, fundraising, property negotiations, trail cutting and bridge building by the American River Conservancy and the federal Bureau of Land Management.

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By Kathryn Reed

Pedaling around Camp Richardson could be a drastically different experience in the not so distant future.

Technically it’s called the Pope Baldwin National Recreation Trail, though most people who’ve been on this stretch of asphalt on the South Shore know it as the Camp Rich Trail.

With nearly 110,000 trips – that would be one-way – on it each year, it is the most highly used path in the Lake Tahoe Basin, according to trail surveys by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.

The U.S. Forest Service, the landowners, want to improve the 30-year-old route so it meets current standards, connects to other trails in the area and is moved away from Highway 89.

The American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) defines how trails should be configured. To meet those standards the Camp Rich route needs to be moved back five feet from the highway or a vehicle barrier installed.

Creating a two-foot shoulder of dirt or aggregate material (not paved) is another criteria. The paved trail would be 10-feet wide.

Garrett Villanueva, assistant forest engineer, said his agency is looking at the American River Trail in the Sacramento area to see if that model would work in Tahoe. The separation of user types – cyclists, walkers, equestrians – functions well on that stretch of terrain.

“We have a lot more walkers on peak days than they see on the American River path which is why it might not work,” Villanueva said. “We are going to have to figure out what works from a regulatory and user standpoint as we go through the analysis process.”

Environmental documents for the project are expected to be out for public comment before Thanksgiving. It’s possible the final documents could be completed in March and a record of decision by June. Ground breaking could be in 2012.

Because a definitive plan has not been created the cost is unknown. Villanueva said the Forest Service plans to go after Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act dollars.

“Right now there are a lot of routes on the map. Some will fall off because of wildlife or archaeological constraints or we won’t be able to get the coverage necessary,” Villanueva said.

He envisions some of the current dirt trails going and others becoming official routes.

Improvements are expected on both sides of the highway and along the unofficial trail paralleling Fallen Leaf Lake Road. The idea with the latter is to provide safe access for campers to get to the bike trail.

Linking the end of the bike route at Spring Creek, connecting with Cathedral Road, making the dam at Fallen Leaf Lake crossable without getting off the bike, connecting with Fallen Leaf Lake Road, and possibly going to where the highway is four lanes are all on the drawing board.

Some popular cross country trails may become official routes, too.

Improving winter parking is another goal of this plan. Currently people park at the gate for Baldwin Beach to trek in, which can be dangerous and does not accommodate the number of users who want to re-create there.

While Villanueva works on the bike routes, his colleagues are working on the South Shore Recreation Plan that includes upgrades to Camp Richardson.

“To a large degree it is in the same configuration it has been for 50 years,” Villanueva said of Camp Rich. “The uses have changed. We are coordinating plans.”

As plans go forward, the public will have opportunities to comment. When documents are released, they will be on the USFS website.